NZME chairman Peter Cullinane shares business insights

NZME Chairperson Peter Cullinane speaking to Bay of Plenty businesses on Tuesday evening at the Tauranga Art Gallery

"Knowing your product and how to tell its story" was the key message at a midwinter gathering of Bay of Plenty businesses on Tuesday evening at Tauranga Art Gallery.

The evening, hosted by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, included talks from special guests NZME chairman Peter Cullinane and award-winning NZME content producer Ron Mackie.

Cullinane is widely respected in global advertising and marketing, with expertise in both Australasian and global markets as the former chief operating officer of Saatchi & Saatchi (Worldwide), and its chief executive officer (New Zealand) and chairman (Australasia) for more than eight years prior.

Cullinane, who is also the executive chairman of Lewis Road Creamery, a company he founded eight years ago, said despite the many changes in approaches to business over the years, what remained constant was "knowing why you do something, having a great product and knowing how to start conversations about it".

Simon Anderson chief executive of Realty Group, which operates Eves and Bayleys, and Greg Murphy, General Manager of NZME Bay of Plenty

He said advertising had a key role in how to achieve this.

"Digital has changed the calculus. Social media means it has never been cheaper to launch a brand. But the same goes for your competitors.

"So what makes you different? It is so important to realise your product and brand are not two different pieces of the puzzle. They are one and the same. Inseparable.

"So when thinking about your brand every step of the way, think about your product. Whether you are selling butter or making curtains, I ask people: what do you do, why do people need curtains? Go to the heart of what you do."

It's a philosophy Cullinane has applied working with many clients over the years, always "knowing in my bones what makes brands successful."

At Saatchi he created Mainland Cheese's "Good things take time" advert, which enjoyed years as a wildly successful marketing campaign.

Matt Headland Chief Commercial Officer, NZME and NZME Chairperson Peter Cullinane

Pitching to Telecom at the dawn of the boom in the telecommunications sector, Cullinane based his pitch around a quote which for him summed up the power of communication: "The void created by the failure to communicate is soon filled with poison, drivel and misrepresentation."

It won him Telecom's business.

Knowing how to tell his product's story turned his own business into a phenomenal brand success story when Kiwis started frenzied clamouring for Lewis Road Creamery's chocolate milk in 2014.

Lewis Road, although it sells dairy products, is essentially a creative business he says.

"Again it is the product that tells the story, I had the idea for the company shopping at New World in Freemans Bay – I reached for a pack of Lurpak, and thought to myself 'hang on, why is a Kiwi, living in a land of grass-fed cows, buying butter from Denmark?'"

Now exporting Lewis Road products, it is again the strength and credibility of the story – New Zealand's grass-fed credentials - that he is using to tell his point of difference, particularly in the US.

"When you have a message you want others to listen to, you need to also ask yourself 'why should people care and why should they share?'"

Running his own smaller business - he also is co-founder of Antipodes Water – taught him more valuable lessons about marketing.

"Advertising has a remarkable influence over the success of a brand . . . When you are writing the cheque you have all the responsibility . . . there are so many moving parts that make a business successful, it is important to find partners who understand your business so well they can finish sentences for you."

NZME Content Producer Ronnie Mackie

Ron Mackie echoed this when he spoke about how businesses can place trust in media companies as the professionals who help tell their stories.

"You know your business best, but it helps to put trust in the professionals who can look at it from a different perspective, and help find solutions.

"Writing an ad for a car mechanic, I asked him what he does. He said 'fix cars'. But his customers don't care about him fiddling with a carburettor. To them, he gives them peace of mind, makes their life easy. That's what he does for a living."

Mackie spoke of the extraordinary power of radio to tell stories, especially in smaller markets in New Zealand.

"A good radio ad can make a Napier dairy owner as famous as McDonald's."

Cullinane agreed that a story on radio or in the NZ Herald about a business could make the difference.

"It is not enough just having a good product or service, again it's about starting those conversations whether on social media, radio or endorsement by respected media – such as the New Zealand Herald, which remains the beating soul of New Zealand journalism."

NZME chief commercial officer Matt Headland, who interviewed Cullinane on stage, told the audience that Cullinane was evidence of the exceptional qualifications and experience of NZME board members, which ultimately benefit clients.

"Having access to this incredible knowledge and insight is invaluable as the board and executive collaborate together and share experience, which then collaboratively flows through the business, meaning we can do wonderful things for our customers."

These "wonderful things" include helping businesses create stories that are widely shared so that Cullinane's mantra "love your brand to bits" turns into everyone loving your brand to bits.

"Your branding has to be brilliant and your product even better…that's your story," Cullinane said.

Anne Pankhurst and Matt Cowley of the Tauranga Chamber of Commerce

About Peter Cullinane
Former chief operating officer of Saatchi & Saatchi (Worldwide), and its chief executive officer (New Zealand) and chairman (Australasia) for more than eight years prior

Founder and chairman of Lewis Road Creamery Limited

Director of HT&E (listed on the ASX). Peter was previously on the board of WPP AUNZ Limited and Skycity Entertainment Group.

Peter holds Masters degrees in Business Administration and Management. He is a member of both the Marketing and Advertising Halls of Fame.